Pakistan opened their campaign at the T20 World Cup 2024 against the United States of America during the match no. 11 on Thursday, June 06. Re-appointed recently as the captain, Babar Azam came at the toss alongside USA skipper Monank Patel, as the latter flipped the coin, which eventually went in the hosts’ favour and they opted to bowl first.
It was revealed by Babar at the toss that star all-rounder Imad Wasim won’t be featuring in the playing combination due to his unavailablity for the game. The visiting skipper added that Pakistan will be entering the contest with four seamers – Mohammad Amir, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf. The reason revealed for Imad’s absence was an injury, but Babar said the Men in Green are covering it up by playing with four speedsters on a bright, sunny afternoon clash.
“We would have also bowled first. It is a morning match, the pitch is fresh and we will look to put the runs on the board. Good to see sun is out, we haven’t seen sunshine for the last 3-4 days. He (Imad) has an injury but we will cover it up by playing the four fast bowlers,” Babar said at the toss.
Also Read: T20 World Cup 2024: Imad Wasim set to miss USA clash with side strain
Been playing at the same surface: USA skipper
“We will bowl first. We have been playing on the same surface and chasing is easy on this ground, also it is better to know the target. It was a great game and we want to continue that momentum. It is a new challenge and we want to make sure we play our best cricket. One change for us,” USA skipper Patel told at the toss.
Also Read: Reports: ICC changes Pakistan team hotel in New York, new location five minutes away from stadium
Here are the Playing XIs:
Pakistan: Babar Azam(c), Mohammad Rizwan(wk), Usman Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Azam Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Amir, Haris Rauf
United States: Steven Taylor, Monank Patel(w/c), Andries Gous, Aaron Jones, Nitish Kumar, Corey Anderson, Harmeet Singh, Jasdeep Singh, Nosthush Kenjige, Saurabh Netravalkar, Ali Khan